Jiang Huanran seemed not to hear his son's heroic words. He stroked his beard and fell into deep thought.
He was in charge of the Honglu Temple, while the Hua family's territory was in the Hanlin Academy. They had a friendship as officials in the same court but no conflicts of interest. However, if they were to be related, they were related because the father of Hua Yizhen, the grandfather of the Hua family, was his teacher.
The Hua family has many students all over the world, and how many civil officials can say that they have no connection with the Hua family? It's just that at critical moments, everyone is better at protecting themselves. But there is still something different. Nearly a year has passed and no one has taken advantage of the Hua family. This shows how deep the good relationship between the Hua family is on weekdays.
It seemed like it was innate, the Hua family members were better at studying than others. No matter what genius or talent they had, they were not good enough in front of the Hua family members. And he had never heard that the Hua family members were good at martial arts, just like people in the capital had never known that the Hua family had such a famous girl.
Jiang Xinde couldn't help but wonder, could it be that Hua Yi had anticipated this difficulty, otherwise how could he have raised such a girl? He could be called a god of wealth!
Although they did it quietly, everyone knew that the new businesses that emerged were all from the Hua family. None of them lost money, they were all making money, big profits! Many people were jealous, just waiting to see how long they could hold back before taking action.
He knew very well what kind of person his youngest son was. He was a little muddleheaded, but he had all the vision that a son of an aristocratic family should have, which was evident from the fact that he was so convinced and took the initiative to propose marriage after rejecting countless marriage proposals.
But…
"Dad, please tell me when you are going to propose marriage for me."
Jiang Xinde signaled the servants in the room to go down, "Do you know what the situation is in the Hua family?"
"Isn't it just that he was sent down by the Emperor?"
Jiang Xinde laughed, "Isn't it just being punished by the emperor? You can tell me something bigger than being punished by the emperor."
When Jiang Huanran heard his father's words, he knew that he disagreed, and he was immediately unhappy, "So what, Dad, you can't do this. When the Hua family was prosperous, they were praised to the sky. Now they have fallen from the altar, but the Hua family is no longer named Hua, right?"
Jiang Xinde was not angry when his son scolded him like that. On the contrary, he was quite happy. There was no shortage of cunning and scheming people in their family, but Huanran was rare. Because of him, the family was much more harmonious. Even for this rare harmony, he couldn't agree to it.
"I believe Hua Zhiding is a good girl. She allows the Hua family to live respectably and preserves the family's legacy. But son, a girl like this cannot marry into our family."
"Why?!"
"Because you have two older brothers who are already married, and the wives they married combined are not as capable as Hua Zhi. If you marry Hua Zhi, the family will be unbalanced. Hua Zhi has the ability to be the head of the family, and marrying you, the youngest child who can't support the family, would be unfair to her."
Jiang Xinde did not raise his voice, but spoke it slowly and softly, but it seemed to explode in Jiang Huanran's ears and in his heart. He knew that his father was not lying to him, not trying to convince him, but telling him the truth. The family was most afraid of losing balance. If he really married Hua Zhi, the two sisters-in-law above would be compared to the mud. How would they get along then? How could his brother not have any objections
What my father said was right, it couldn't be righter, but the person he finally fell in love with...
"I'm moving out..."
"Bang!" The teacup fell at Jiang Huanran's feet. Jiang Xinde's smile disappeared. "Are you planning to split up the family?"
"If I'm separated, then I'm not your son anymore? This isn't my home anymore? I'll still come back to honor you, mom, and grandma... Dad, I've wanted to spend my whole life with Hua Zhi since I was a child, can't you fulfill my wish?"
"If you enjoy the wealth of the Jiang family, you must consider the overall situation. The Hua family is disliked by the emperor, but you marry the daughter of the Hua family. Do you want the Jiang family to stand against the emperor?"
"Marrying a girl from the Hua family means standing against the emperor? If the emperor really doesn't care about the old relationship, do you think the empress dowager can protect the women of the Hua family?"
"Don't even think about it, it's impossible!" Jiang Xinde's expression grew even colder and harder. Since his family was involved, he would never tolerate his son's reckless behavior.
As the youngest son in the family, Jiang Huanran grew up in the love and care of everyone. He also did his duty as a playboy, because only in this way would his brothers love him and feel at ease with him.
He also wanted to stand out and have his own place among the countless trendsetters, but the Jiang family could not have a youngest son who was both favored and motivated.
Jiang Xinde felt sorry for him when he saw him like this. He softened his expression and was about to offer some benefits to coax him when he heard his youngest son ask, "Dad, am I an obedient son?"
Jiang Xinde was slightly stunned, and answered him affirmatively, "Yes, you are more obedient than many boys from other families."
"I don't fight or compete. I get whatever you give me."
"… yes."
"I messed up the marriage that my grandmother arranged for me, with a woman of higher birth than my eldest sister-in-law. Am I being a brother?"
"… yes."
"I broke up with a brother who I grew up with, just because his family and my family are no longer in the same camp. Is this for the sake of the overall situation?"
"… yes."
"Since I'm so well behaved, why can't I even have someone I like?" Jiang Huanran laughed like crying, "She doesn't have the high status of the eldest sister-in-law, nor the influence of the second sister-in-law. She doesn't bother anyone. She is just outstanding. It's not her fault. This is the kind of Hua Zhi I like. I can be happy for a long time if she looks at me. Dad, I just want someone like this."
Jiang Xinde felt very distressed. Compared with those children of aristocratic families who always caused trouble and had their families to clean up the mess, Huanran was indeed obedient. Even if he acted naughty on weekdays, he knew his limits. He drew a circle for himself and acted and had fun within that circle. He would never step out of line and would not do anything to harm the interests of the family.
The reason why they can be so friendly and respectful to each other is because he knows what he should and should not do. Just like he said, he gets whatever they give him without fighting or competing. Now that he has fallen in love with someone and wants to marry her, he, as a father, has to stop him.
He had to stop her, not because he looked down on Hua Zhi. He really liked her very much. Such a capable person would be a great fortune for any family. But she could only be the eldest daughter-in-law. If she was the younger one, the ones above her would be wary of her, and the inner house would be in chaos.
What's more, he didn't dare to take the risk since the emperor hadn't made his attitude clear. If the emperor was still angry with the Hua family, he would have to stay away from the Jiang family. As the patriarch of the Jiang family, this was something he should take into consideration, even if it meant wronging his youngest son.
"Huanran, Dad will find you a good marriage..."
Jiang Huanran smiled bitterly and shook his head. He rubbed his face vigorously and stood up and said, "No matter how good she is, she is not Hua Zhi. I don't want her."
Jiang Xinde quickly stood up and asked, "Where are you going?"
"The Hua family."
"Jiang Huanran!"
Jiang Huanran stepped over the threshold and turned to face him, "I want to go to the Hua family. The eldest girl is injured. I want to go see her."
"You should go and pay your respects to your mother. Come, take the young master to see the lady."
When it comes to his mother, Jiang Huanran can no longer bear it. He has been away for more than a month and it is time for him to pay his respects to his mother when he returns.
Jiang Xinde felt even more uneasy when he saw how easy he was to talk to. He could be more relieved if this kid messed with him, but the Hua family! Jiang Xinde sighed, "Watch the young master closely and don't let him go out."
"yes."
PS: I wrote a chapter about a supporting role, and it was quite emotional. The weather was too hot, and my head was dizzy. It felt a bit difficult, and I cried for no reason while writing. Everyone has their own reasons, and no one can live like a crab.